I was wondering if anyone had any idea what the bass drum is that Madlib is using on Further Adventures of Lord Quas. On a lot of tracks, there will be two bass drums, a mid-range one that is more audible and then a lower-frequency that you need a sub to really hear. You can hear it pretty clearly on the J.A.N. song at the end where the "pencil-necked geek" part comes on. It's playing underneath the dude's voice (you need a sub tho, laptop speakers certainly won't do and most headphones probably won't either).

But it's used throughout the album. I have pretty quality 909 and 808 drum kit samples that I use and it doesn't sound like either of those. If anyone knows...spill it.

also, having the kits ain't the same as having the machine and being able to tweak the parameters, pitch, decay, and tone are pretty crucial

No I know, but I listened to Further Adventures twice and it's pretty obvious it's the same drum every time used throughout. Or maybe not, I could be wrong, but it sure sounded that way to these (7+ years of beat-making trained) ears. And, in any case, it didn't sound like something you could get out of a 909 or 808 no matter how much tweaking is done. Maybe it's a 909 but certainly not an 808.

Ha ha !It's how the track is mastered go hunt down the Dave Cooley interview. there thread over !!

I guess you are referring to this:

Remix: Can you isolate a kick drum like that?

Dave Cooley: It doesn't always work with a bass line in the loop, because sometimes the kick and the bass are hitting at the same time, but it's a similar approach. In fact, they were doing this kind of thing as early as the disco days to make tracks bump — only with analog gear, of course. So, again, you make a nonlistening key track and boost the lows and then send it out on a bus. Then, make another track, an aux track with the Pro Tools Signal Generator. It's just a continuous tone that you place as a plug-in on that aux track, and then you lower the tone all the way down to 60 Hz. So, now, it's just a subsonic frequency, and once you put a gate on it, you can key the gate off of the bused track with all the boosted lows so that only the kick drum in the loop is opening the gate with that 60Hz tone. Then, you can play with the release time to shape it — whether you want a 909 shape or a long, decaying 808 shape.

I don't think this is what I'm talking about tho, because I can hear it in parts where there isn't a loop, like the afore-mentioned J.A.N. song. I'm pretty sure it's something that's compositional, not happening in post-production. I guess the main reason I'm interested in this is because I always associated Madlib (and Dilla) with organic, sampled drum sounds, but I was listening to Further Adventures in a car other than my own and I was hearing all these frequencies that I don't usually hear, especially in the bass. I didn't associate Madlib with the electronic drum thing in hip hop with bumping bass and all that, but this opened my eyes to the fact that his beats do in fact have an electronic bass drum that is filling out the low end. I mean I was actually amazed, in some parts it was totally overpowering, like he would be playing the bass drum over the snare and stuff, but it's a different frequency range so it does fill out the sound. So I was wondering what he was using.

attention STMB rookies: this is what will happen to you if you ask dumb questions on this board. i have sooooo many more random shenanigans to choose from if need be, and i will ransack your thread no problem and declare it as my own lol.

You know what does my nut, when the explanation is right there, right infront of you and "NO no thats not it !" fiddle around with 303 for half an hour , isolator, octave, even the eq, all the answers are on this page, but find your own sound don't worry how Madlib n Dilla did stuff, thread is now tombstoned off a ladder into tables on fire surrounded by barbed wire, and explosives. It is done !!

I don't even keep any drums saved on any level. When I make a beat, I listen to records until I find a break I didn't know I had, or grab a record I know has breaks if my samples are ready. It's crazy people need to save every last drum sound down to the last 808 they don't have. You could probably have a dozen beats done by the time you find your exact kick out of the 35,000 drum samples you have saved. Just my two cents.

I don't even keep any drums saved on any level. When I make a beat, I listen to records until I find a break I didn't know I had, or grab a record I know has breaks if my samples are ready. It's crazy people need to save every last drum sound down to the last 808 they don't have. You could probably have a dozen beats done by the time you find your exact kick out of the 35,000 drum samples you have saved. Just my two cents.

I'm totally the opposite. I have more drums than I know what to do with. I have like 200gigs of drums. Sometimes I just browse through and listen to them..... A single drum hit can inspire a whole beat sometimes with me

I'm totally the opposite. I have more drums than I know what to do with. I have like 200gigs of drums. Sometimes I just browse through and listen to them..... A single drum hit can inspire a whole beat sometimes with me

I've got to say I'm on par with Grifty for drums, they are so so important, and you can never have enough, there is no way I would discard breaks or drums that have gone through say an SP1200, ASR 10, S950, MPC 60, they all sound different and do different things, they're all different sample rates, adding warmth or punch or grit or flava, 2nd you run these little suckers into tape then your going to have a whole new sound, problem is the sounds we want and need come from everything that is discontinued, half the reason Hiphop does not sound like it used to, the computers do not have the analog filters or the hardware tone of these machines, there is nothing better than sampling a break sped up into an SP1200 then slowing that grit fueled break down. Also I bet everyone has gone through the whole KIck drum sample pack to re-use a kick that you loved before, for it to suddenly sound shit, does it sound shit ? or is it purely the fact it doesn't fit the sample, same with hats n snares. You can pretty much guess that most of the music we all sample was probably recorded to tape, having a big selection of drums that you know have been run through a similar tape speed are going to fit a hell of a lot better than some over-processed 808 that has been kissed by vst effects. Basically know your drums inside and out, to think I haven't even mentioned Timpany, and knock, I could go on all day about drums breaks n beats, I go to bed thinking about them and then wake up thinking about them. The most disturbing thing in reality would be No Drums !!

To get to know my breaks inside and out, I get blunted and play as many records as I can. I often just chop up a bunch of breaks together to describe the sounds you mean. No right or wrong way. I'm just a vinyl purist, I literally only use my mpc to make beats and don't even know how to import mp3s. Straight chops on my beats every single time. I'm a youngster compared to the heads that were around for the golden age but using vinyl really gets me into a creative mindset because I have to work harder and more frequently to make beats. I even sample and pitch my synths and bass from records.

To get to know my breaks inside and out, I get blunted and play as many records as I can. I often just chop up a bunch of breaks together to describe the sounds you mean. No right or wrong way. I'm just a vinyl purist, I literally only use my mpc to make beats and don't even know how to import mp3s. Straight chops on my beats every single time. I'm a youngster compared to the heads that were around for the golden age but using vinyl really gets me into a creative mindset because I have to work harder and more frequently to make beats. I even sample and pitch my synths and bass from records.

This is me to. Except I don't save anything. Once I record it to my 10 track I delete it from the MPC or SP.

God I remember having my MPC and I had to finish what I was doing and go straight to 4 track, had No where to save from the MPC I had no computer at all, do feel a resurgence in old school methods, really nice to see it, there are still the sample pack peeps, someone on the beat battles last week, was commended for some of the sounds, his response made me laugh "Thanks man it's from a maschine expansion pack" maybe young, but packs with massive presets and pre eq'd drums is so not how it's done, I think I was reading something earlier bout Kev Brown making beats, and funnily enough he said listen to every record start to finish, may be stoned can't remember, but its that vinyl crunch n crackle and hunting for those sounds, setting the vibe for your brain to listen.

and funnily enough he said listen to every record start to finish, may be stoned can't remember, but its that vinyl crunch n crackle and hunting for those sounds, setting the vibe for your brain to listen.

To get to know my breaks inside and out, I get blunted and play as many records as I can. I often just chop up a bunch of breaks together to describe the sounds you mean. No right or wrong way. I'm just a vinyl purist, I literally only use my mpc to make beats and don't even know how to import mp3s. Straight chops on my beats every single time. I'm a youngster compared to the heads that were around for the golden age but using vinyl really gets me into a creative mindset because I have to work harder and more frequently to make beats. I even sample and pitch my synths and bass from records.

This is me to. Except I don't save anything. Once I record it to my 10 track I delete it from the MPC or SP.

i got a 2000xl with the zip drive hooked up last year and got a bunch of discs online cheap. i mostly just save various percussion stuff and one shots drums that aren't really break records that i'll otherwise never remember, and then some different layer like stuff, horns, guitars, strange sounds, and i guess a bunch of breaks, but i also usually pull out a handful of records to find sounds when i'm working on something too. sometimes certain things just jump into your head and you know right where to look which is always the best, but being able to load up a bunch of sounds and being able to pitch them and see how they sound with the beat is something that really helps me.

Yeah go for it I'll see if I can turn it back again, oh Jame you can't call yourself Frankenstein there already is a bloke from the 90's which I totally forgot about, You need a RE-brand my man, let the christening commence !!!

Yeah go for it I'll see if I can turn it back again, oh Jame you can't call yourself Frankenstein there already is a bloke from the 90's which I totally forgot about, You need a RE-brand my man, let the christening commence !!!

maybe i'll use that for a track title or something. but i really don't care that someone in the '90s was named Frankenstein; it's a public domain character, and i specifically chose it so i would NOT have to resort to some pseudonym. the shortened version of it is literally my first and middle name, James Frank. the Frankenstein part comes in when people realize what i do, with literally digging up the dead through records and splicing shit together to create little monsters in the form of beats. so with that said, please stop trying to rebrand me STMB, haha.

maybe i'll use that for a track title or something. but i really don't care that someone in the '90s was named Frankenstein; it's a public domain character, and i specifically chose it so i would NOT have to resort to some pseudonym. the shortened version of it is literally my first and middle name, James Frank. the Frankenstein part comes in when people realize what i do, with literally digging up the dead through records and splicing shit together to create little monsters in the form of beats. so with that said, please stop trying to rebrand me STMB, haha.

Dude I can see what you mean but the fact this guy has come back and already has the same name as you, and you chose your own name, which is a HUGE no, so with no further a-dooo!!

Jam Frank (like anne frank, but it would be a beat diary)

Frankzilla (Kind of obvious)

Jimbob the Drumgod

J-Killa (sorry I know )

Frankly Just James (mmm )

Dr Frank

Jimmy Mcbeatbanger the 1st

Jim Kray (With a K due to the ganster twins, possible DJ name, twins turntables, get it )